KOTA KINABALU (ANN/THE STAR) – Between January 1 and Wednesday, the Sabah Fire and Rescue Department successfully extinguished open fires across a vast area of 3,904.45 hectares, as reported by its Director Abdul Razak Muda.
During this period, the department tackled a total of 1,435 fire incidents. Currently, efforts are focused on dousing flames over an additional 1.49 hectares in Tuaran.
Abdul Razak detailed that the majority of fires occurred in forest regions, accounting for 2,180.85 hectares across 578 incidents.
These were followed by fires on agricultural lands and vegetable farms, which saw 96 incidents covering 911.06 hectares, and then by shrub and grassland fires, with 746 cases over 714.48 hectares. Peatland fires were less frequent, with 43 incidents affecting 99.3 hectares.
He highlighted that, of Sabah’s 27 districts, only Telupid, Tongod, and Kalabakan have been spared from open burning incidents thus far.
According to Abdul Razak, Kota Belud experienced the most significant damage, with 725.8 hectares burned, followed by Kuala Penyu at 688.73 hectares, and Tuaran at 616.43 hectares. While fires in Kota Belud and Kuala Penyu have been fully extinguished, efforts in Tuaran are ongoing.
In his statement to Bernama, Abdul Razak also noted that the past 24 hours saw 43 fire reports, covering an area of 105.05 hectares.
Last month, the department issued a reminder to the public to avoid open burning, especially given Sabah’s current dry conditions, which have led to widespread forest and bush fires.
